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[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5161 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>

118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 5161

     To amend title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to prohibit 
    discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal 
  financial assistance on the ground of religion, to amend the Higher 
     Education Act of 1965 to provide for rigorous enforcement of 
prohibitions against discrimination by institutions of higher education 
         on the basis of antisemitism, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 24, 2024

    Mr. Rubio (for himself and Mr. Scott of Florida) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
     To amend title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to prohibit 
    discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal 
  financial assistance on the ground of religion, to amend the Higher 
     Education Act of 1965 to provide for rigorous enforcement of 
prohibitions against discrimination by institutions of higher education 
         on the basis of antisemitism, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Preventing Antisemitic Harassment on 
Campus Act of 2024''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITION OF DISCRIMINATION ON THE GROUND OF RELIGION.

    (a) In General.--Section 601 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 
U.S.C. 2000d) is amended by striking ``or national origin'' and 
inserting ``national origin, or religion''.
    (b) Non-Application.--Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 
U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 607. NON-APPLICATION OF PROHIBITION OF DISCRIMINATION ON THE 
              GROUND OF RELIGION TO RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONS.

    ``The prohibition of discrimination under any program or activity 
receiving Federal financial assistance on the ground of religion under 
this title shall not apply to a program or activity that is conducted 
or controlled by, or is otherwise affiliated with, a religious 
organization, including a student religious organization.''.
    (c) Harassment.--Section 601 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 
U.S.C. 2000d) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``No person'' and inserting the following: 
        ``prohibition of discrimination.--
    ``(a) In General.--No person''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(b) Inclusion of Indifference to Harassment.--The term 
`discrimination', for purposes of this title and with respect to an 
educational program or activity of a college, university, or other 
postsecondary institution, or a public system of higher education, 
includes deliberate indifference to harassment that is so severe, 
pervasive, and objectively offensive, and that so undermines and 
detracts from a victim's educational experience, that the victim is 
effectively denied equal access to the resources and opportunities of 
the educational program or activity.''.
    (d) Policy.--
            (1) In general.--It shall be the policy of the United 
        States to enforce title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 
        U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) against prohibited forms of 
        discrimination rooted in antisemitism no less vigorously than 
        against all other forms of discrimination prohibited by such 
        title VI.
            (2) Definition of antisemitism.--In this subsection, the 
        term ``antisemitism'' means a certain perception of Jews, which 
        may be expressed as hatred toward Jews, and the rhetorical and 
        physical manifestations of which are directed toward--
                    (A) Jewish or non-Jewish individuals or their 
                property; or
                    (B) Jewish community institutions or religious 
                facilities.

SEC. 3. AMENDMENT TO THE HIGHER EDUCATION ACT OF 1965.

    Part B of title I of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1011 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 124. SANCTIONS FOR NONCOMPLIANCE WITH TITLE VI.

    ``(a) Definition of Institution of Higher Education.--In this 
section, the term `institution of higher education' has the meaning 
given the term in section 102.
    ``(b) Sanctions for Certain Violations.--
            ``(1) Sanctions.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Notwithstanding section 602 of 
                the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d-1), an 
                institution of higher education that receives Federal 
                financial assistance under this Act and is found, by 
                the Office for Civil Rights of the Department, to be in 
                violation of title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 
                (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) with respect to antisemitic 
                discrimination in a program or activity as described in 
                subparagraph (B) or (C) shall be subject to the 
                sanction provided in subparagraph (B) or (C), after the 
                Secretary--
                            ``(i) notifies the institution of such 
                        finding; and
                            ``(ii) provides the institution with an 
                        opportunity for a hearing.
                    ``(B) Two violations.--In the case of a particular 
                program of an institution that violates title VI of the 
                Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) with 
                respect to antisemitic discrimination for a second time 
                within the 5-year period preceding the date of the 
                second violation, the Secretary shall impose a fine on 
                the institution in an amount that is not less than 10 
                percent of the Federal financial assistance received 
                under this Act by the particular program of the 
                institution in which the violation was found during the 
                year of the second violation (regardless of how long 
                the institution remains in violation) and any 
                subsequent year during which the institution remains in 
                violation for not less than 90 days.
                    ``(C) Three violations.--In the case of a 
                particular program of an institution that violates 
                title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 
                2000d et seq.) with respect to antisemitic 
                discrimination for a third time within the 5-year 
                period preceding the date of the third violation, the 
                Secretary shall impose a fine on the institution in an 
                amount that is not less than 33 percent of the Federal 
                financial assistance received under this Act by the 
                particular program of the institution in which the 
                violation was found during the year of the third 
                violation (regardless of how long the institution 
                remains in violation) and any subsequent year during 
                which the institution remains in violation for not less 
                than 90 days.
            ``(2) Waiver.--For purposes of imposing sanctions under 
        paragraph (1), the Secretary may treat violations described in 
        paragraph (1) as a single violation if the violations--
                    ``(A) are in relation to discrimination that was 
                conducted by a person other than the institution or its 
                faculty or staff; and
                    ``(B) occurred within a span of not more than 24 
                hours.
    ``(c) Monitoring.--The Secretary shall monitor private lawsuits 
brought against institutions of higher education that receive Federal 
financial assistance under this Act for a violation of title VI of the 
Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) with respect to 
antisemitic discrimination to independently evaluate whether the 
institution violated title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 
U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) with respect to antisemitic discrimination.
    ``(d) Notification to Students, Faculty, and Staff.--An institution 
of higher education that receives Federal financial assistance under 
this Act and is found to be in violation of title VI of the Civil 
Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) with respect to 
antisemitic discrimination shall provide a notification of such finding 
to all enrolled students, faculty, and staff of the institution.
    ``(e) Report.--The Secretary shall submit a full written report to 
the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate 
and the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of 
Representatives with respect to each action to impose a fine under 
subsection (b) that includes the circumstances and grounds for such 
action.''.

SEC. 4. AMENDMENTS TO CIVIL RIGHTS ACT OF 1964.

    Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.), 
as amended by section 2, is further amended by adding at the end the 
following:

``SEC. 608. FACTORS IN DETERMINATION OF NONCOMPLIANCE; MONITOR.

    ``(a) Factors.--Each Federal department and agency in determining 
whether a person is in compliance with a requirement adopted pursuant 
to section 602, and court in determining whether a person has violated 
this title, shall make considerations, including of the following 
factors:
            ``(1) The person's prevention of discrimination, and 
        remediation (including disciplining faculty and staff) with 
        respect to discrimination, on the basis of another ground 
        provided in section 601.
            ``(2) The person's prevention of discrimination, and 
        remediation (including disciplining faculty and staff) with 
        respect to discrimination, against another group on the basis 
        of the same ground for which the determination of compliance or 
        a violation is being made.
    ``(b) Monitor.--A court that finds a violation of this title or 
upholds a department or agency determination of noncompliance with a 
requirement adopted pursuant to section 602 may appoint a monitor to 
review and report on the implementation of any remedy with respect to 
such finding or determination.''.

SEC. 5. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.

    Nothing in this Act, or any of the amendments made under this Act, 
shall be construed--
            (1) to expand the authority of the Secretary of Education;
            (2) to infringe on, or otherwise diminish, the rights 
        protected under any other provision of law;
            (3) to create any negative inference as to either the legal 
        protections provided to victims of antisemitism or the 
        prohibitions on antisemitic discrimination by Federal law prior 
        to date of enactment of this Act; and
            (4) to infringe on, diminish, or otherwise conflict with 
        any right protected under the First Amendment to the 
        Constitution of the United States.

SEC. 6. SEVERABILITY.

    If any provision of this Act, an amendment made by this Act, or the 
application of such provision or amendment to any person or 
circumstance is held to be unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act, 
the amendments made by this Act, and the application of such provisions 
and amendments to any other person or circumstance shall not be 
affected.
                                 <all>
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